“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1″ earned a massive $123 million this weekend, but its opening trailed the debuts of the previous two films in the young adult franchise, inspiring questions about the health of the series.

By any measure, “The Hunger Games” has been a moneymaking powerhouse with few equals. It has earned north of $1.5 billion and is a major reason that Lionsgate, the studio behind the films, has seen its stock price more than double in two years.